Fred Savage

Thats all well and good if you like junk science. First off they only looked at 79 cases. Other studies have looked thousands and come up with opposite results. A study in 1997 followed 65,000 patients for 10 years and found no correlation between lung cancer and marijuana use. Much broader and more scientifically legitimate studies have been coming out one after the other showing anticancer properties.

You can read about that 'study' and its legitimacy here: http://www.alternet.org/story/76496/

No, I'm very aware of the resin. I do not the know the full reasons why, and it is a combination of factors, but it does not leave behind any residue in computers or otherwise. Marijuana smokers smoke in their homes habitually without any lasting effects whether it be odor, residue or discoloration of anything. Its funny when I was a repair tech I would even have people confess from time to time that they smoked a lot of weed around their computer and were worried it was dirty inside. From experience I could assure them it would be fine and it always was, I would of never known if they didn't mention it.
This is line with medical studies which show no tar buildup in lungs or other respiratory complication dues to marijuana use. In fact marijuana is a bronchialdilator which helps to open airways which is why is it is actually used to treat respiratory issues such as asthma. Of course anytime you burn plant matter and inhale it it is not 100% healthy, a vaporizer can negate any minimal negative effect that exists.

I'm sorry... I'll put it better for you. Cigarette smoke leaves a residue, discoloration and smell. Period. And marijuana does not. Equating the effects of both because they are "smoke" is equally as retarded as what you are so upset about. The only thing that matters is the end result in this case.

Smoking is the new racism, hahahaha. Pretty dramatic. Also, tell that to the 20 Million+ people who have been arrested for personal use of marijuana. And If you called me a stoner in a derogatory way like that in person I'd hit you. It's funny for you to be crying prejudice against smokers and go on to pass it to another group. Its laughable. Especially in context of what these machines look like. I don't care what people do at home, but your computer is also in your home so you should know the effects of your choices.

Trust me, the Apple Store is never looking for a reason to deny service. It has to be some clear problem. At the end of the day they'd love to take care of it but there has to be some limits, some reason. Especially when it comes to the health of the tech repairing it.

Yes the worst part is for the repair tech.

But it is worse that dust. Dust is loose and dry and while you don't want a lot of buildup, of course, it is easy to remedy, just blow it out. It is clear when a machine has been around heavy smoking. The tar permanently discolors everything as well as being caked on. Its impossible to clean and will definitely lead to overheating issues at some point. If you saw one you would make a very sad face.

Your comment shows your own ignorance. "Pot's as bad or worse"... I mean do you really have any facts or experience to back up that claim? I do. Marijuana has no effect, you cannot tell when it has been smoked habitually around a machine. Marijuana does not contain the tar like cigarettes do. It does not leave any residue or smell. Cigarettes discolor and leave dense buildups of tar that have a nauseous odor that leaves you feeling sick. Whether a tech is a smoker or not they still end up feeling like poo after working on a machine that is badly polluted.

It is not their responsibility to feel sick because of how you choose to use your mac.

You think dust and smoke damage from cigarettes are equivalent things? Clearly you have no experience with it if you think that.

Beyond the unreasonable buildup of foreign material in the machine the health issues are paramount. More than anything they are refusing to work on which they have the right to do. I have sat there and worked on one of these things and felt sick after. I was reluctant and first and after experiencing that took a harder line against repairing such badly polluted machines.

It is not a stretch to call it a biohazard. Not only is it clearly damaging to computer. The smoke turns everything yellow and starts to buildup in to tar filled deposits all over. It clogs up fans and will cause cooling issues. But the real issue is the biohazard. Working on a computer with this crap inside and inhaling it causes you to feel sick... even to smokers. Its disgusting. Touching it is another level the technicians shouldn't have to deal with. It blows my mind to thing how much smoke has to pass through the computer to cause the kind of discoloration and deposits I have seen in my time. Its neglectful as you can see signs of it on the outside. As I said it starts to yellow and the tar builds up around the vents, just like dust. In fact in my time with Apple we rejected way to few of these situations. It has to be pretty bad for Apple to reject it.

And everyone calling it a cop-out or whatever is really just ignorant. You have no idea what you are talking about in this situation, clearly.

And any one making this an "Apple is anti-smoker" thing have taken the full jump into stupidity. As if Apple cares if you smoke... they only care about the condition of the computer. In fact rarely can you tell a customer is a smoker because most people go smoke outside, away from things like their computer, because they are aware of the damaging effects of cigarette smoke to everything. Its their choice.

All it does is turn everything really blue.

Who cares. The WSJ is for rich people who want to roll around in how rich they are and learn how they can continue to get richer while using everyone below them like disposable resources.